I’ve done movies and books, but I haven’t touched on music yet so we’re going to go there next. I have no mandate going in, so this may be a go-nowhere entry. Take my apologies in advance.
Right now, I find myself in a musical lull. (To be completely honest, right now I find myself on the computer, in the bleary-eyed morning, without any pants on, but let’s stay on topic.) I feel like my internal playlist of favourite songs and artists is getting smaller each day, and even bands I used to love are dropping off that list (Stereophonics, I’m looking at you.) There’s no doubt that, to a large degree, this is my own fault. You can’t, in good conscience, rail against the state of music when you haven’t bought a new CD in almost a year.
I haven’t been grabbed by anything new in a while, and while I’d like to blame it on the state of music, it probably has more to do with me getting old than anything else. I don’t put the time or the money into music that I used to—not that when I did I was putting my resources to artists that deserved it. I remember a time when I thought Moxy Fruvous was the best band ever and that no song could ever rock harder then Crazy Nights (until Nelson came along with Love and Affection.) At least now I have more discriminating tastes. This is not to say I’m a music snob, which I think is the worst kind of arts snob to be; and the easiest. You can consume music so much faster then books or movies, especially in the post-Napster download-o-rama.
When I claim that I have discriminating tastes, maybe that’s not completely true. I’ve actually reached a stage where I’ll admit I like a song that it’s embarrassing to like: like Señorita by Justin Timberlake (embarrassing because I’m a guy), or Perfect by Simple Plan (embarrassing because I’m not fourteen, angst-filled, and misunderstood by my parents). It’s more a matter of my opinions being polarized.
The further I get into this entry, the more I realize that I have no argument. This is a loosely assemble pile of observations about music, so I’m sort of just eating up bandwidth here. But I’m this far, so why stop now?
Probably sad to say, but one of things that draws me to about ninety percent of the songs I like is that they’re really singable. Frankly, I want to rock out in my car or in my home, basically just sing my ass off. I want to belt out “I’m not sick but I’m not well,” or “give me my money back, you bitch.” I’m a fan of discernable lyrics and I also like a song that tells a story, though that’s definitely not a requirement. What it amounts to is laziness in the end. While I do want to turn a book over in my head for a long time, when it comes to music I want to make a snap decision. I will never sit down with the liner notes and puzzle out what the frig the singer’s talking about if it’s not readily apparent (Gord Downie, I’m looking at you.).
As I write this I’m coming to realize that there is probably an actual formula to make me like a song. If not that, then at least a checklist where three of eight requirements must be met. The song must: (1) be singable, (2) have a hook, (3) tell a story, (4) make me wish I could dance, (5) be completely unlike anything I’ve heard before, (6) speak directly to a present or past frame of mind, (7) make me nostalgic, (8) make me want to run down the street as fast as I can.
To conclude and for what it’s worth, here are a few songs I’ve been rocking out to lately, as well as which of the requirements that song met.
The Last Recidivist – Lowest of the Low (2, 6, 8)
Let’s Get it Started – Black Eyed Peas (1, 2, 4)
Plea From a Cat Named Virtue – The Weakerthans (1, 2, 3, 5)
Everything Falls Apart – Dog’s Eye View (1, 3, 7)
Get Over It – OK Go (2, 6, 8)
Sheep Go to Heaven – Cake (1, 2, 5)
Chester the Molester – Sloan (1, 2, 1, 3, did I mention 1?)
Right now, I find myself in a musical lull. (To be completely honest, right now I find myself on the computer, in the bleary-eyed morning, without any pants on, but let’s stay on topic.) I feel like my internal playlist of favourite songs and artists is getting smaller each day, and even bands I used to love are dropping off that list (Stereophonics, I’m looking at you.) There’s no doubt that, to a large degree, this is my own fault. You can’t, in good conscience, rail against the state of music when you haven’t bought a new CD in almost a year.
I haven’t been grabbed by anything new in a while, and while I’d like to blame it on the state of music, it probably has more to do with me getting old than anything else. I don’t put the time or the money into music that I used to—not that when I did I was putting my resources to artists that deserved it. I remember a time when I thought Moxy Fruvous was the best band ever and that no song could ever rock harder then Crazy Nights (until Nelson came along with Love and Affection.) At least now I have more discriminating tastes. This is not to say I’m a music snob, which I think is the worst kind of arts snob to be; and the easiest. You can consume music so much faster then books or movies, especially in the post-Napster download-o-rama.
When I claim that I have discriminating tastes, maybe that’s not completely true. I’ve actually reached a stage where I’ll admit I like a song that it’s embarrassing to like: like Señorita by Justin Timberlake (embarrassing because I’m a guy), or Perfect by Simple Plan (embarrassing because I’m not fourteen, angst-filled, and misunderstood by my parents). It’s more a matter of my opinions being polarized.
The further I get into this entry, the more I realize that I have no argument. This is a loosely assemble pile of observations about music, so I’m sort of just eating up bandwidth here. But I’m this far, so why stop now?
Probably sad to say, but one of things that draws me to about ninety percent of the songs I like is that they’re really singable. Frankly, I want to rock out in my car or in my home, basically just sing my ass off. I want to belt out “I’m not sick but I’m not well,” or “give me my money back, you bitch.” I’m a fan of discernable lyrics and I also like a song that tells a story, though that’s definitely not a requirement. What it amounts to is laziness in the end. While I do want to turn a book over in my head for a long time, when it comes to music I want to make a snap decision. I will never sit down with the liner notes and puzzle out what the frig the singer’s talking about if it’s not readily apparent (Gord Downie, I’m looking at you.).
As I write this I’m coming to realize that there is probably an actual formula to make me like a song. If not that, then at least a checklist where three of eight requirements must be met. The song must: (1) be singable, (2) have a hook, (3) tell a story, (4) make me wish I could dance, (5) be completely unlike anything I’ve heard before, (6) speak directly to a present or past frame of mind, (7) make me nostalgic, (8) make me want to run down the street as fast as I can.
To conclude and for what it’s worth, here are a few songs I’ve been rocking out to lately, as well as which of the requirements that song met.
The Last Recidivist – Lowest of the Low (2, 6, 8)
Let’s Get it Started – Black Eyed Peas (1, 2, 4)
Plea From a Cat Named Virtue – The Weakerthans (1, 2, 3, 5)
Everything Falls Apart – Dog’s Eye View (1, 3, 7)
Get Over It – OK Go (2, 6, 8)
Sheep Go to Heaven – Cake (1, 2, 5)
Chester the Molester – Sloan (1, 2, 1, 3, did I mention 1?)
Comments
Basement Jaxx - Do Your Thing (1,2,4,5,6,7,8)
Elvis vs JXL - A Little Less Conversation (1,2,4,6,7,8) (Come on: "Satisfactionin'")
Linkin Park - By Myself (1,2,3,6,8)
Seether & Amy Lee - Broken (1,3,6,7)
Ella Fitzgerald - Mack the Knife (1-8) BOOYA!
Maybe that last one is not really all 8. But it's ELLA fer chrissakes!
J